Emerging insights into exosomal protein functions in colorectal cancer

Colorectal cancer is one of the common malignant tumors of the digestive system, and the second leading cause of cancer-related death worldwide. Early detection and prevention is the key to improve the survival rate of patients. Traditional screening methods such as endoscopy are invasive, and fecal occult blood tests and fecal immunochemical tests are less sensitive. Therefore, the development of a non-invasive early detection technology has important clinical value. Exosomes are microvesicles that are released by cells with a phospholipid bilayer structure, usually between 30 and 150 nm in diameter, and contain bioactive molecules such as proteins, lipids, nucleic acids ( DNA, mRNA, and miRNA), which involved in intercellular communication and played an important role in variety of biological processes, including tumor cell proliferation, invasion and metastasis, angiogenesis, drug resistance and immune regulation. Exosomes carry proteins that can reflect the physiological and pathological state of source cells and have the potential as biomarkers. This article reviews the research progress of exosomal proteins in colorectal cancer, and discusses its potential application in early diagnosis, prognosis assessment and treatment of colorectal cancer, which provides a new idea for the clinical diagnosis and treatment of colorectal cancer.